Often for those that have lower extremity injures or those that have limited lower extremity strength, it is often difficult to maneuver around. Not only do injuries limit mobility, a cast or brace applied to a person's lower extremity further inhibits movement in order to facilitate healing. As a result, many individuals require assistance from others, such as caretakers, to move from one location to another. Everyday activities also require the assistance from others in order to facilitate the same. Therefore, there exists a need for a mobility aid, such as a leg lifter that allows a user to facilitate his or her own movement without the assistance of others.
Leg lifters that allow a user to lift his or her own leg to improve their range of motion by helping lifting a leg and foot onto a wheelchair footrest, a bed, into a car or other locations are disclosed in the prior art. These include devices that have been patented and published in patent application publications. Some of these devices provide a leg lifting device that includes a pair of upper and lower bands secured around a cast and a grasping band for moving the leg. Other devices provide a foot attachment with a strap that enables manipulation of the foot. These devices, however, fail to provide a leg lifter comprising a wrapping portion and an adjustable strap having a clip fastener affixed to the wrapping portion.
The present invention provides a leg lifter that includes a wrapping portion having a first end and a second end configured to encircle a user's ankle via a fastener. Preferably, the fastener is a hook and loop fastener attached to the first end and the second end. The wrapping portion further includes an adjustable strap that extends outwardly and orthogonally from substantially a midpoint of the wrapping portion. The adjustable strap includes a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the proximal end is affixed to the wrapping portion. The distal end is adapted to be held in a user's hand or wrapped around his or her wrist such that the user can raise the adjustable strap in order to move his or her lower extremity. The distal end further includes a clip fastener that allows a user to removably attach the distal end to his or her clothing. In this way, the user can facilitate his own movement to achieve independence from caretakers.
It is therefore submitted that the present invention is substantially divergent in design elements from the prior art, and consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to leg lifting devices. In this regard, the instant invention substantially fulfills these needs.